Category Archives: Electronic

Guess who survived her first week in med school? Well, every single person in my class but that is beside the point. I survived, and I am super smart now. Just kidding about that last statement. Yes, I learned a lot but sort of in an intimidating way. It seemed like for every fact I learned, it led to a hundred more things I was going to have to know in the future. Example: Oh, the phrenic nerve innervates the diaphragm? Well, what spinal nerve does the phrenic arise from? And what nerves branch from the phrenic? And what happens when the phrenic is severed/damaged? I have no idea how I am going to remember all of this information. But I must admit, I love it. So, as a follow up to the top five things I am looking forward to in med school, here is the best things from the first week of medical school.

1. Anatomy Lab
Sure, class is interesting but nothing compares to learning about the human body by taking apart. I got to hold the lungs in my hand! I got to feel the differences between the bronchi, artery, and vein. I got to see how all the organs intricately fit together in the thorax. And I learned how fragile the human body can be.

2. People!
I have found a few great people in my class that I feel really comfortable around. Like be-myself-comfortable. So all my fears about being alone for 8+ years will hopefully

I do this on a regular basis. NBD

3. Free Mental Health Clinic
In medical school, you can’t really see/diagnosis patients until your third year. This is a huge problem because med students sometime forget why they came to med school in the first place–to help patients. Instead, they only focus on memorizing parts of the body, symptoms, diseases, risk factors, metabolic pathways etc etc etc. At U of Iowa, there are a couple of places where you can see patients starting as a first year in med school. One is the free mental health clinic. Don’t worry, I am not diagnosing or giving patients medication. Instead, I am learning how to most effectively interview patient….which is a lot harder than it looks. Asking the right questions, making the patient comfortable, and getting accurate information out of patients takes a lot of practice.

Might be a bit of an exaggeration. But not by much.

4. The professors
Most are great, funny, scary smart, and very helpful.

5. Not having an exam the first week of school
Starting in a few weeks, I will have a test every Friday. Normally 2+ hours. Almost always followed by a night downtown at the bars (only what I have been told). So having a exam-free Friday was great.

There is Love in You by Four Tet

Not not much time to listen to music this week, besides when studying or working out. So here is a song from this summer. When we were on a trip about a month ago, one of my best friends described this as a great driving song. Especially at night. The trees insulate the car on each side of the narrow road, only the headlights illuminate the dark asphalt. I always feel so safe, comfortable, and alive when driving at night. It is like all my senses are sharpened somehow. Weird, I know. But it is the closest I have come a “religious” experience. Well, and when riding my bike at night.